Assessment of literacy and numeracy skills related to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug labels.

BACKGROUND

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are widely used and have a potential for over-the-counter misuse. Limited health literacy is associated with poor health outcomes. Identification of new strategies to assess literacy and numeracy could be useful in targeting effective education initiatives.

OBJECTIVE

To characterize numeracy and literacy skills related to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug labels in primary care patients.

METHODS

Patients were recruited and consented over an 8-month period after their regular primary care visit. Demographic information was collected and two instruments were administered to assess literacy and numeracy skills: (1) a medication label literacy instrument focused on non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (MedLit-NSAID) and (2) a general healthy literacy-screening tool, the Newest Vital Sign. Two questions on the MedLit-NSAID instrument evaluated understanding of the Food and Drug Administration medication guide for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and the Food and Drug Administration approved over-the-counter label.

RESULTS

A total of 145 patients were enrolled. Mean MedLit-NSAID and Newest Vital Sign scores were 6.8 (scale range 0-8) and 4.2 (scale range 0-6), respectively. Higher education level was associated with higher scores for both tools (p ⩽ 0.05). Total MedLit-NSAID scores on average were higher in females compared with males (6.5 vs 6, p = 0.05). Patients with decreased kidney function (n = 18) had significantly lower MedLit-NSAID scores (p ⩽ 0.05). Test-retest scores were not significantly different for MedLit-NSAID (p = 0.32). The correlation between the tools was 0.54 and internal consistency MedLit-NSAID was 0.61.

CONCLUSION

A medication information focused instrument provided specific information to assess health literacy related to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug labels. This information could be utilized to develop patient education initiatives for medication label comprehension.